MINI John Cooper Works WRC adventure

Putting even former World Rally Champion Hannu Mikkola and his Group B Audi
Quattro to shame, the MINI John Cooper Works WRC is proving to be the
biggest draw at the Goodwood Festival of Speed’s Forest Rally Stage

John Cooper Works compete during the 2011 Acropolis rally in the Klenia-Mycenae special stage, Corinth, Greece last monthPhoto: EPA

Putting even former World Rally Champion Hannu Mikkola and his Group B Audi Quattro to shame, the MINI John Cooper Works WRC is proving to be the biggest draw at the Goodwood Festival of Speed’s Forest Rally Stage.

With Kris Meeke – the UK’s only top line WRC driver – behind the wheel, the MINI is instantly swamped by eager fans any time it comes to a rest; such is the enthusiasm for the brand’s return to international rallying.

Meeke, who’ll be present for the duration of the weekend, lit up the 1.6-mile gravel stage as he set the fastest times of the opening morning in his 300bhp, four-wheel drive Countryman.

The stage itself is devilishly tricky; barely a car’s width, lined by trees that seem to shave a layer of paint off the door mirrors and technical in the extreme. From the co-driver’s seat it’s daunting at 80mph, but Meeke seems to be calling on a tiny fraction of his bravery reserves.

I rode with the Northern Irishman for two runs through the stage. The grip that the MINI was able to find on the inconsistent surface, in places chalky and dusty, smooth and polished to a sealed surface in others, truly beggars belief.

Meeke’s fancy footwork over the pedals, right foot modulating the throttle while the left tickled the brake, allowed him to exploit every ounce of grip the tyres could sniff out. Only his hands move faster than his feet as he twirls on corrective steering lock and tugs his way up the gearbox.

The second run didn’t go quite so well. I’d goaded the typically competitive 31-year-old into chasing an even faster time than his two minute, 19 second first effort.

I sense him reacting even quicker to the start signal. He approaches the first right-hander even hotter than before, but just three corners in a deafening bang undoes his good work.

“The propshaft broke and sliced a gash in the transmission tunnel,” said Meeke, once we’d been recovered. “This car’s had a tough life, though. It’s done all the testing and promotional work.”